Shared Risk

Shared Risk is an unparalleled study of how communities at risk respond to major hazards. This book explores the elastic boundary between structure and flexibility that enables modern organizations to function effectively under uncertain, dynamic conditions. It shows how communities and organizations cope with dynamic and unpredicted events.

Preface. Acknowledgements. List of tables. List of figures. Part I: Shared Risk in Theory: Context, Concept and Methods of Analysis. Shared risk and self-organizing processes. Models of transition in complex, dynamic environments. Measuring change in nonlinear social systems. The 'Edge of Chaos': creative response in dynamic environments. Part II: Shared Risk in Practice: The Evolution of Response Systems. Nonadaptive systems: San Salvador, Ecuador and Armenia. Emergent adaptive systems: Mexico City, Costa Rica, and Erzincan, Turkey. Operative adaptive systems: Whittier Narrows, California; Loma Prieta, California; and Maharashtra, India. Auto-adaptive systems: self organization or dysfunction in Northridge, California and Hanshin, Japan. Part III: Future Strategies: Managing Risk in Complex, Adaptive Systems. Adaptation to disaster: evolving response systems. Sociotechnical systems and the reduction of global risk. Bibliography. Appendices. Index.